5 Blogging Tips | Let’s Start Here

If you happened to tune in to my Instagram LIVE video the other day — thank you! I’ve been making a very conscious effort to get over my fear of public speaking and put myself out there so you guys can get to know me better. I did an Instagram LIVE with my girl Rachel from Pinteresting Plans (since she basically lives next to me) and we ended up with SO MANY QUESTIONS about blogging. It really hit me that mine and Rachel’s answers would be completely different since we’ve both had different journeys on how we got to where we are. I wanted to share some overall tips I’ve learned along the way in the 6 years I’ve been running Oh So Glam. This post could have gone on and on, so I’ve narrowed it down to just FIVE for now, and I’ll share more on each category in different posts — how I stay motivated, favorite editing apps, NYFW, when I knew I could go full-time, etc.

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5 BLOGGING TIPS

Find your voice. I know, how cliche. Every single blogger conference I’ve attended, every article I’ve read on this very subject, every single blogger you ask is going to say the same thing, but you know what?! It’s true. Find your own voice. Know your role. In a completely ridiculously over-saturated market, it’s more important than ever to actually provide VALUE to your readers and not just be a copy cat of someone else. What can you bring to the table? What are you an expert in? I started my blog strictly sharing fashion and my personal style and it has evolved because I am constantly learning beauty/travel tips and tricks and want to share them with you! I’ll be the first to admit, it’s tempting to look at what someone else is doing (especially if it’s working for them) and want to try to replicate it to get a piece of the pie… but it’s MORE IMPORTANT to stay true to who you are and try to find inspiration from within. The success that person is experiencing is likely because they are staying true to who they are. It’s easier said than done but an important takeaway. Be comfortable with who you are and share that with your audience.

Never put your eggs in one basket. A total life lesson that doesn’t even have to pertain to blogging. I’ve learned that the most successful people have MULTIPLE streams of income and you should never rely on any ONE thing. All us bloggers got hit HARD when the Instagram algorithm change happened last year and I’ve had to change up my strategy to not feel the hit in my wallet. I’m constantly tweaking my business plan and goals due to the ever-changing landscape of the blogging world.

Brand yourself. One of the best compliments I ever received was a friend who said that she would know it was my photo on her Instagram feed before she even saw the name. My reaction?! “YESSSSS!!!” You have to brand yourself and create an overall aesthetic that you carry with you from your blog to each platform. Simple things like how you edit your photos and others like colors and fonts make a HUGE difference and help bring consistency. I actually used a color finder website once I created my new logo above which gives the exact number on the color wheel — in my case, the exact shade of pink from my logo and I bring it across everything I create. Now, when I create collages, Instagram Stories, etc. — it’s all the exact same shade of pink and the Oh So Glam brand. I also make sure that I apply the same VSCO filter to every single one of my photos to help my feed look cohesive.

Know when to ask for help. I’ve been running Oh So Glam for about 6 years and running it full-time for about 2 and a half years. I’m someone who actually thrives on being busy — when I have a crazy to-do list, I am so much more motivated to bang through tasks to check them off. I somehow made a full-time 50 hour a week job AND another full-time gig of running a successful blog work at the same time. I was so relieved to be able to focus on Oh So Glam after I quit my job and vowed I would learn how to do all the things to help me grow. I taught myself Lightroom and Photoshop, I created income and project based Google docs to help keep me organized, I negotiated brand campaigns and kept track of payment, edited all my photos, managed all my social media channels. I’m a control freak and one of my weaknesses is actually knowing when I need to ask for help. Sometimes it’s actually super unproductive to do everything yourself. After about 2 years of drowning, I made a change this year and have started to hire people to help keep Oh So Glam moving behind the scenes. I have a website developer who has helped create the blog you’re currently reading and a team that helps to make sure it runs properly and can be found when you Google me, a manager who helps brand negotiations, contracts, and invoicing, and a social media team who are starting to help with growth strategy and my email newsletter. These people by no means work for Oh So Glam full-time but are part of my team and on-call when I need them. I can then focus on more important things that only I can do — reader engagement (replying to all your emails and comments), content creation (blog posts and videos), and be more of the “face” of Oh So Glam.

Make friends and be nice. Blogging is so incredible because it lets you connect with people absolutely anywhere in the world. It’s actually pretty amazing. It can also be crazy because you are BEHIND a screen most of the time and almost all your interaction is through a phone or computer. Get out there and go to local events, invest in going to blogger conferences. Even if you don’t learn anything, the interaction with like-minded people will do your brain wonders. Also, be nice to people. There really is room for everyone in blogging as long as you don’t copy someone else and bring value to the table (see point number one above again). I don’t look at follower count when I make a friend. If I like you, I like you for who you are. Be the same way… it’s such a better way to live life.

Natali

Love this blog – it’s both helpful and encouraging of new bloggers! One question, how did you create your own VSCO? Did you use an app or something? What’s the easiest way to go about that so it’s consistent with all of your posts? Thank you!

[…] to start off this post by thanking you all for the incredible support on my last Blogging Tips post from last week — it was seriously one of my highest viewed posts over the last few months! I guess that […]